


An Unexpected Partnership

by literaryoblivion



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Human, Carpenter Castiel, Carpenter Dean, Co-workers, Collaboration, Crushes, Desk, Domestic, Enemies to Friends, Festivals, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Furniture, Kissing, M/M, Partnership, Rivalry, Sharing a Bed, Slow Build, Slow Burn, woodworking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-21
Updated: 2016-10-21
Packaged: 2018-08-23 17:43:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 19,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8336932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/literaryoblivion/pseuds/literaryoblivion
Summary: “You have everything you need?” Charlie asks as she dusts off her hands on her black apron.“Think so. Sure you don’t want to come with?” Dean asks with a wide grin and pleading eyes.
  Charlie winks. “As much fun as watching you internally debate on whether you want to kill or kiss Castiel is, I think I’ll pass. Someone’s gotta keep an eye on the shop while you’re selling our wares.” 

  Dean huffs. “I don’t have internal debates.” 

  “Oh, that’s right, they’re mostly external. I’m surprised Ellen is still keeping your booths next to each other after last year’s fiasco.”
Dean's feud with fellow woodworker Castiel is legendary, but this year, Dean's determined to start off on a better foot. But when he and Cas are commissioned to build a desk together, can they put their differences aside long enough to do it?





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lemonsorbae](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lemonsorbae/gifts).



> This is a gift for Annaleese. It originally started out as present for our best-friend-iversary, which would have been 5 years in March (hence the woodworkers since wood is the 5-year anniversary gift); however, it took a lot longer and I didn't finish it. SO I decided to have it be her birthday fic, which was in August, but yup, you guessed it, I was still working on it. BUT hey it's finally done and now it's almost Christmas *laugh cries*. Turns out, this is the longest completed fic I have EVER written. WOW. 
> 
> Anywho, happy best-friend-iversary-birthday-almost-Christmas! I love you to pieces and I hope you enjoy this fic and it makes your day a little brighter. :)
> 
> Thank you to Carrie and M for beta-ing and for helping me with the title and the summary!

“You have everything you need?” Charlie asks as she dusts off her hands on her black apron. 

“Think so. Sure you don’t want to come with?” Dean asks with a wide grin and pleading eyes. 

Charlie winks. “As much fun as watching you internally debate on whether you want to kill or kiss Castiel is, I think I’ll pass. Someone’s gotta keep an eye on the shop while you’re selling our wares.”

Dean huffs. “I don’t have internal debates.”

“Oh, that’s right, they’re mostly external. I’m surprised Ellen is still keeping your booths next to each other after last year’s fiasco.”

“That was so not my fault. When I asked about getting a different location, Ellen laughed and said she wants to stay in business and then gave me some excuse about keeping the woodworkers together. Which is a total lie because I know Benny has a booth three rows over and he has wood galore.”

He knows he sounds whiny, but he really, really doesn’t want a repeat of the mess that happened at last year’s Midwestern Vintage and Homemade Arts Festival. Let’s just say, more than feelings got hurt, and Dean may or may not have had to hobble to his car with only one eye open after it was said and done.

If he were smart, he’d bow out of the show altogether and tell Ellen _thanks but no thanks._ But, in truth, he gets half of his clients from the festival, and his company could use the business. As great as Charlie is with the website and online presence, people still want handcrafted wood furniture they can see and touch before they buy. It’s hard to do a custom order online or over the phone, and at the festival he can get a feel for what the person actually wants instead of what they think they want. In the end, they are always happier with what Dean creates for them instead of their original idea. 

Charlie pats Dean on the shoulder in what is probably supposed to be a comforting manner, but it feels more condescending. “I know, buddy. Well, try to behave yourself this year and remember you are a grown-ass adult. And I’m saying this as a friend, but you need to woman up already.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Well, if I were you, I’d already be hitting that.” Dean frowns and opens his mouth to comment, but Charlie continues, “Don’t even try to make excuses. You’ve got a thing for the blue-eyed, brown-haired whittler, and it’s nauseating and has nothing to do with his woodworking skills. Or it could, but you haven’t _womaned up_ to ask him to show you what all he can do with wood.”

“I don’t know whether to be confused or offended.”

Charlie rolls her eyes. “What is there to be confused about? I mean _dick_. What kind of carpenter are you that you can’t follow wood jokes?”

Dean gives her a deadpan look, and she grins. “I’m leaving,” Dean says.

“Good. Ask Cas out or at least give each other a blowjob before you come home. There, see, no wood jokes.”

“I didn’t hear any of that. Goodbye.” He walks towards the back door of the shop and hears Charlie call out a “Bye, Dean!” before the door closes behind him.

Once outside, he locks up the back of the trailer and climbs into the front seat. He wishes he could take his own car for the five-hour drive to Illinois, but he’d rather Baby be safe at home than risk possible dings from the trailer or crazy Illinois drivers. 

He checks to make sure he has everything--his bag, display photos, signs, and business cards that he had set in the passenger seat of the U-haul--then starts the engine and drives out of the parking lot and onto the highway. It’s late morning, so the work rush has mostly cleared out, leaving the road open for Dean. If he’s planned it right, he should make it to Kansas City in a couple hours for lunch and then get to Springfield, Illinois by late afternoon.

On the drive he plans to rock out to some tunes, but he can’t get what Charlie had said about Castiel out of his head. He’s known of Castiel and his work for a few years, had customers coming in and asking if he’d heard of the Illinois whittler-turned-woodworker, enough that Dean finally had to look him up.

Castiel’s pieces were exquisite. The furniture looked sturdy, sure, but the detailing work was beautiful and seemingly impossible. All looked hand-carved and perfected, and in fact the site touted that all decorations were done by hand and not by a scroll saw or some other power tool. Dean had found himself clicking through photos of the man’s work, and it was breathtaking.

If he was being honest, Castiel himself was also breathtaking. There had been a few photos of him on his site, and he was a very attractive man: messy dark hair, piercing blue eyes, and kissable lips.

But a few years ago when Cas started attending and selling at the festival, Dean met him, and he was stoic, standoffish, and downright rude. Dean tried to be friendly at first, but Castiel ignored him and at one point even told him to leave him alone. Dean couldn’t understand how the guy got any business at all, and he did get a ton. Dean wasn’t jealous; his own handiwork spoke for itself (and his charming demeanor would help him along if it didn’t). But Cas was something else, and more importantly utterly resistant to Dean’s charms.

It had finally come to a head last year when Dean got fed up at Cas for what he considered as Cas looking down on his products as if they weren’t high quality, and… well, boy, could Cas throw his punches. Dean realized later how childish he was being, but he was too hurt, literally, and proud to apologize, and Cas hadn’t offered any himself.

Dean doesn’t want the same thing or anything similar happening this year, so he’s determined to find Cas and apologize, you know, be the bigger man. Maybe they had just gotten off on the wrong foot all those years ago and they can start fresh. Whatever Charlie said, he’s sure Castiel hates him, and the tension she sees between them is not sexual, at least not from Cas’s side. Sure, Cas is attractive and maybe Dean had entertained the idea of asking him out once, but with everything that’s happened between them, Dean would rather be with someone who actually likes him, not just someone with a pretty face.

The weekend won’t end with him and Castiel between the sheets, he’s positive, but maybe it can at least end with them on good terms. He can hope anyway.

~

When he finally gets to the festival, he has plenty of time to check in, unload and set up his booth, and see if anyone else needs help. He finds Ellen, who tells him to behave but at least keep things entertaining, which he doesn’t know what she means by that. He grabs a few members of the helper crew to assist him in taking his furniture to his booth. After they’ve placed his few tables and chairs he brought for display, he thanks them and sends them off. He finishes setting out his sign, his other furniture displays, and once satisfied, he looks up to see if his fellow sellers need help.

Not everyone is there yet, and there are still several empty booths nearby, including the one for Castiel, who is right by him. Just as Dean is about to leave his row to go down by the unloading docks, Castiel and a few others appear. Castiel is directing the helpers, who are together carrying a picnic bench, on where to place it.

Dean freezes, unsure whether to turn the other way and hide, or wait until Castiel sees him first to see what his reaction will be, or if he should bite the bullet and apologize now like he had planned. Before he can make the decision (he was leaning towards hiding, to be honest), Castiel sees him and stares for longer than a glance before going back to guiding the helpers.

Having been caught, Dean decides to stand and wait while he listens to Cas thank the crew who tell them they’ll be back with his other things. The helpers disappear, leaving Dean and Cas alone aside from the woman at the end of the aisle selling coasters. Dean walks closer to Cas’s booth while Cas sets down a few smaller items he had been carrying.

After a moment of Dean realizing he’s been staring at Cas’s backside for longer than he should, he clears his throat, gaining Cas’s attention.

Cas’s face is neutral, which Dean isn’t sure is a good or bad thing, when he says, “Hello, Dean.”

“Uh, hey, Cas.” Dean wrings his hands, knowing he should just get this over with, but it’s more difficult than he thought.

Cas looks over at Dean’s booth, taking in the simple setup, and then looks back at Dean. “Is the table new?”

Dean nods. “Yeah, finished it up a couple weeks ago for this. I, uh, like your bench,” Dean adds gesturing with his head at the picnic bench behind Castiel.

“Thank you,” Cas replies with a glance back at the item.

Dean sees a slight flush on Cas’s cheeks, and he wishes he hadn’t seen it at all. It’d make hating the guy easier. Although, he’s not sure he’s ever _hated_ Cas, disliked sure, but not hated.

“So, uh, Cas, about last year--” Dean starts.

Cas holds up a hand and shakes his head. “I’d rather not talk about it, if you wouldn’t mind. I’d very much like to move on from that.”

“I would too, but I have to say this one thing before I can.”

Cas sighs, shoulders slumping like he’s given up on a fight that hasn’t started. “And what is that?”

“I’m sorry, Cas.”

Cas’s gaze snaps to Dean’s face, his brow furrowed like Dean might not be serious. “You’re sorry?” 

“That’s what I said, Cas. Don’t make me say it again.” It was bad enough saying it the first time for Dean. 

“But… but I punched you? Shouldn’t I be saying sorry?”

Dean shrugs. “You can if you want, but you only punched me because I provoked you, and I shouldn’t have. I was in the wrong. I’m sorry.”

Cas’s lips curl up in a smirk. “You said it again, you know.”

Of course Cas would make fun of him. The asshole. Dean rolls his eyes. “Look, I was just--”

Cas reaches out and grabs hold of Dean’s arm. “Thank you, Dean.” His hand drops away, and he continues, “And, I’m sorry as well. I shouldn’t have reacted the way I did.”

Dean extends his hand. “Start fresh, then?”

Cas gives Dean a small smile and a nod, and accepts Dean’s hand and shakes it. Dean ignores the roughness of Cas’s palm and tries not to catalogue the feeling of callouses on his fingertips when Cas pulls his hand away. He doesn’t do a good job.

“Do you need any help bringing stuff in?” Dean asks, shoving his hands into his jeans pockets in the hopes that he’ll forget what Cas’s hand felt like against his.

“Um, actually, yes, I have one more piece that I was going to do myself because I didn’t want something to happen to it, but…” He looks Dean up and down, and Dean resists the slight shiver at being sized up by Cas. “As a fellow woodworker, I can trust that you’ll be as careful as I would be. Having two people would make it far easier to carry than one.” 

Dean smiles, a little proud at the offhand comment of Cas trusting him, albeit in a roundabout way. “I’d love to help. Lead the way, Cas.”

Cas returns Dean’s smile and then gestures Dean to follow him out to the unloading zone.

They pass the helpers carrying another of Cas’s pieces on the way, this time a rocking chair and matching end table, and Cas tells them to set it next to the bench and thanks them, indicating that after they drop those items off he does not need their help any longer.

When they arrive at Cas’s truck, Dean can’t quite make out what it is that Cas wants him to help carry. It’s dark, for one, but Cas also has it wrapped in a thick blanket, mostly likely to protect it from damage while transporting it. It’s small and short, perhaps a coffee table or small TV stand or cupboard. He wants to ask Cas what it is, but he doesn’t, figuring he’ll see for himself eventually.

Together they carry it out of the truck and to Cas’s booth, and after they’ve set it down where Cas wants it, Cas finally unties the blanket surrounding it and lifts it off. It’s a [gorgeous chest](https://66.media.tumblr.com/2c514f2214e01ea47b7fb1ffef1ba40e/tumblr_ofdqka0bLX1s1q2x1o3_540.jpg), carved with a detailed scene on the sides and top, flowers and leaves as a border. It’s breathtaking, and Dean stares at it wondering how long it must have taken Cas to make that.

“Cas, that’s amazing,” he finally breathes out, stepping up closer and squatting in front of it to take a closer look.

“Thank you,” Cas says.

Dean looks up at him to see another blush high on Cas’s cheeks. “How long did this take you?”

“Close to six months. I didn’t have time to stain it as dark as I would like, but…” Cas shrugs, biting his lower lip, another thing Dean wishes he hadn’t seen.

“It’s beautiful. I think it’s the perfect shade. Darker and you might make it look dingy. It’s awesome, Cas.”

Cas smiles, rubbing the back of his neck as he looks down at his feet. “Thank you, Dean.”

Dean stands up and resists startling back at how close he now is to Castiel; he hadn’t realized how close Cas had been standing to him while he’d been admiring the piece.

“May I take a look at your pieces?” Castiel asks, pointing towards Dean’s booth.

Dean nods, but compared to what Cas brought, his pieces pale in comparison. He follows Cas over and watches as Cas runs his fingers along the table and carefully sits in one of the chairs, leaning back and closing his eyes as if he needs to do that to get the full effect of the chair. It’s mesmerizing to watch Cas examine his work, and he almost doesn’t catch Cas tell him that his chair is incredibly comfortable.

“Thanks, Cas. It’s no rocking chair,” Dean says, thumbing behind him at Cas’s rocking chair.

Cas shakes his head and steps closer to Dean. “It doesn’t need to be. All of your pieces are strong and sturdy, and I can tell you’ve put just as much time and effort into them as I do into mine. They’re different, but just as beautiful.”

Dean’s breath catches in his throat, a little overwhelmed at the compliment Cas is paying him. He recovers quickly with a smile. “Thanks, Cas. That means alot coming from you. Thank you.”

Cas smiles and steps away, backing towards his own booth. “I should go. I still need to check into my hotel. But, I’ll see you tomorrow?" 

Dean’s not sure why it comes out as a question, but he replies, “Yup! See you tomorrow. Have a good night, Cas.”

“You, too, Dean,” Cas says before turning and walking out back towards his truck.

Dean stares after him, replaying their conversation and Cas’s reactions to things he had said. He’s not quite sure what happened between now and last year to have Cas be so nice and friendly with Dean, even complimenting his work, but Dean’s not going to question it. He likes this Cas, and if he didn’t know better, he might even think Cas might like him, too. But he probably doesn’t. Cas is pretty professional and probably only meant it as something one says as one colleague to another.

Either way, Dean is going to soak up anything good Cas says to him. Maybe Charlie had been right and he did like Cas as more than just a fellow woodworker, but after everything that had happened between them in the past, Dean isn’t sure anything remotely romantic would happen with them. But after their conversation just now, perhaps they could at least be friends. And if that is all he can get from Cas, he will take it.

~

The next morning starts bright and early as the opening day of the festival. It’s a Friday, so it won’t be as crowded as it will be on Saturday or Sunday, but there’ll be a steady crowd that will pass through the rows of booths. Dean notices that Cas’s booth has a few more smaller things displayed on his table when he finally gets to his own booth, large coffee in hand. Cas isn’t there though, and Dean thinks he must have dropped off the items and gone to get breakfast somewhere. They haven’t officially opened yet, although there was already a small crowd forming at the gate when Dean had come in through the seller’s entrance.

Dean doesn’t really have anything to set up for his booth, and his curiosity gets the best of him as he decides to take a closer look at the pieces Cas added to his display since last night. He wanders over to Cas’s booth and leans in closer to see what looks to be a jewelry box. It’s not quite as detailed as the chest he helped Cas carry in yesterday, but it’s just as beautiful. It’s a gorgeous pattern of circles and lines and loops; the corners have a gold edge to them, and along the sides are inset pieces of a different colored wood with their own unique design.

The lines are mesmerizing and Dean finds himself getting lost in them to the point that he doesn’t notice that someone is standing beside him.

“That one took me about a month,” Castiel says, voice low and so close to Dean, he jumps back and away.

“Shit, Cas, warn a guy!” Dean shouts in reaction, his hand on his chest like he nearly had a heart attack, which he almost did mainly because Cas caught him staring at his booth.

“I apologize. I didn't mean to startle you,” Cas says, voice sincere.

Dean waves him off. “I shouldn't have been…” Dean stops because he almost says snooping, but he doesn't want Cas to know that. Instead he leaves it open-ended, which is probably not any better.

“I don't mind, Dean. It means a lot to me that you are admiring my work. … If that's what you were doing, I mean.”

“Uh, yeah. Yes. I was.” They both stare at each other a moment, and Dean thinks there's a hint of a smile on Cas’s face. Dean coughs to cover up what he can feel is a slight blush in his own face and changes the subject. “How do you have the patience to be so detailed on your pieces?” 

Castiel shrugs and runs a finger over the box Dean had been scrutinizing. “I don't really notice the time. I find the work relaxing. Sometimes my assistant has to check in on me every few days to make sure I'm eating and get some sleep. I've been better at not getting lost in it lately, but it depends on the piece.” 

Dean nods and opens his mouth to ask him another question maybe or to ask if Cas wants to get something to eat later, but people have started arriving at their booths and there’s a couple in his own sitting in one of his chairs.

“I better, uh,” he says, thumbing over his shoulder.

“Of course,” Cas replies. “Perhaps we can talk more later?”

“Definitely,” Dean answers, giving Cas a small smile before returning to his own booth.

There's steady traffic throughout the day, especially at Cas’s booth, which Dean expected. He gets a few sales himself though, but there's enough customers and lookie-loos for them both that Dean doesn't realize it's almost 3pm and he's starving. He knows Cas hasn't left his booth either, and he's sure Cas is hungry as well, can tell that Cas hasn't been as enthusiastic or friendly with people as he was earlier in the day.

When there's finally a lull for them both, he approaches Cas with his hands in his jean pockets.

“Heya, Cas, I was wondering if maybe you could watch my booth while I get us a bite to eat real quick?”

Cas doesn't even protest, just nods. “Yes. I will.”

“Awesome. Want anything in particular?”

Cas shakes his head and then winces as if he shouldn't have done that. “Anything works for me. But I'd appreciate a lot of water, if you could? I can pay you.” Cas reaches in his back pocket and starts to pull out his wallet, but Dean hold up a hand to stop him.

“Don't worry about it. I got this. You can get tomorrow’s.” Dean grins, gives Cas a wink, and leaves.

Most of the food stalls are picked over after the lunch crowd and incredibly unhealthy, but there's not really any other quick options. He finds one that has some relatively fresh-looking burgers and fries, so he buys two and gets the biggest bottles of water he can.

When he gets back to his area, Cas is hovering between both his own and Dean’s area because someone is walking back and forth between both. It's an older dark-skinned woman, and if Dean could guess, he doesn't think the woman is a serious buyer, although Cas looks like he's worried she is. As he approaches, he hears her tell Cas that his pieces are lovely and that he has a nice range going from simple to ornate. As she says it, she points to Dean’s pieces and then Cas’s own.

“Ma’am, those pieces are indeed lovely, but they are not mine. I’m only covering for a friend while he stepped away, but if you’re interested in his, perhaps you can come back in a--”

Dean interrupts Cas and steps to his side, his showman smile already on his face. “No need to wait, ma’am, I’m right here. Can I help you with anything? Have any questions?”

He focuses on the woman, but out of the corner of his eye, he can see Cas let out a breath of relief, his shoulders lowering from their previously tense position.

The woman looks between them both with a slightly confused face. “You mean you two don’t work together?”

“Uh, no, ma’am.”

The confused look morphs to one of sternness. “I don’t believe it.” Alright, so maybe it wasn’t sternness but stubbornness then.

“It’s true, ma’am,” Cas chimes in. “This is Dean Winchester, and he is responsible for those pieces,” he points to Dean’s simple, yet sturdy works, “and this side was made by me.”

“Hmmm,” the woman hums, but that one hum sounds so disapproving. Dean doesn’t quite know what to do, and it doesn’t look like Cas does either, so they both stand there staring at the woman. Dean is secretly hoping she gives up and walks away so he can eat, but he continues to smile so as not to be rude.

The woman opens her mouth like she’s going to ask another question, but she closes it and narrows her eyes, first at Cas and then at Dean. Dean is about ready to tell her to buzz off already, but seeming to find whatever she was looking for in her scrutinization of the two men, she lifts her eyebrow and steps back. She lets out another hum and walks away.

Dean looks at Cas, a clear “what the fuck was that?” written on his face, and Cas just shrugs.

“Thank you for the food,” Cas says, eyeing where Dean had set down the burgers on Cas’s table while the woman had been talking and inspecting them and their work. 

“No problem. Although it’s probably cold now, so sorry ‘bout that.” Dean reaches over for his own meal to take back to his booth, but as he does, Cas stops him from walking away with a hand on his wrist. 

“You don’t… you can eat here… with me. If you want?” 

It would be a lie if Dean said his heart didn’t flutter at the touch and the invitation. Cas’s hand slowly falls from Dean’s arm, and his gaze lowers to his feet, as if he were regretting the offer.

“Uh, okay,” Dean says quickly. “Let me grab my chair.”

Cas nods and moves his own chair over so Dean will have room at the table. Once Dean had settled beside Cas, both men tuck into their burgers and fries. A few people wander into their booths while they eat, but none seem interested in more than just looking and leave just as quickly as they come. Dean eyes Cas every once in awhile, noticing the small dribble of grease or ketchup on Cas’s lower lip before he took a napkin and wiped it off. He finds himself imagining scenarios in which he helps Cas with that spot of ketchup and then has to shake it off and focus back on his own food. 

Neither man says anything to each other, but it isn’t awkward, at least not to Dean. It is a comfortable silence. As soon as they are done, Cas takes their trash and disposes of it in the bin at the end of the aisle.

“I’ll get tomorrow’s,” Cas says when he comes back to Dean’s side.

“Sounds good to me,” Dean says with a smile, standing and lifting his chair to carry it back to his side.

There is only about an hour left before the festival closes for the day; the crowd thinned significantly while they ate. A few sellers have already begun packing things up and securing their more valuable products in lockboxes, draping cloths over the bigger ones they can’t secure.

Dean has a few sheets he plans to cover his pieces with, but other than that, there isn’t much else he needs to do. He wonders if Cas plans on locking his smaller pieces up or not. The whole park where the festival is located is secured, with security guards and off-duty cops patrolling the area to protect the vendors area, but it doesn’t hurt to be safe.

While Dean had a steady line of onlookers, he has only gotten two confirmed customers and a handful of potential clients who promise to come back tomorrow with specifics on their commissions. It isn’t his best, but it’s only the first day, and he’s hopeful that tomorrow he’ll have a great deal more of business.

Finally, when there’s no one coming by, the park closing in about twenty minutes, Dean packs up his own belongings and pulls out the sheets. In his periphery, he notices Cas doing the same, and he smiles to himself about it.

Last year, Cas had insisted on not packing up anything until the festival officially closed for the day. Of course, last year was also the Incident, as he likes to call it, but this year is turning out nothing like last year, for which Dean is grateful. Cas seems to be very different, friendly even, than he had been last year, and Dean wonders what had happened between then and now to make Cas so different. It’s a good thing, of course, but had Cas been stressed last year? Has he had something great happen this year that’s made him more relaxed? At that thought, Dean hopes it’s not because he met someone and that’s why Cas is happier. He likes this different Cas, had even started entertaining the idea of maybe taking Charlie’s advice, but he’s not sure how to feel knowing he’s taken and unavailable.

Not that Dean has done anything to warrant the possible seed of jealousy at the thought of Cas with someone else. It’s not like Dean has a claim to him or has been given any indication by Cas that he thinks of Dean in that way. Just because he’s being friendly and nice to Dean now doesn’t mean he likes him as anything more as colleagues. Dean doesn’t want to make things awkward by asking him out now in case it doesn’t work out or if Cas does have someone or is only just being nice to Dean but doesn’t swing that way or something.

For the second time that day, he’s so wrapped up in his thoughts, that he’s surprised again when Cas comes over and asks if he’s alright.

“Yeah? Uh huh. What?” Dean stammers out.

“Are you sure? You’ve been staring at that sheet in your hands for a while now. Did you need help?”

“Oh, uh. No. I got this. But, uh, thanks.”

Cas stays there a minute, staring at Dean like he doesn’t quite believe him, but eventually he gives a small nod and goes back to his own booth, securing his own pieces. Dean wraps up his things quickly and is ready to hightail it out of there and to Ellen’s bar, when he hears his name being called from behind him.

He turns and it’s Cas, a messenger bag slung over his chest, and the box from earlier tucked under his arm. There’s enough distance between them that Dean takes a few steps closer to Cas so that they don’t have to yell.

“I was… wondering if… are you planning on just going back to your hotel?” Cas asks sheepishly.

“I, uh… yeah, for a little while. Drop my things off, shower, change, you know before I go out. You?”

“Uh… Yeah, me too…"

The way that Cas says it though, it doesn’t sound like he’s telling the truth, and Dean’s not sure which part is the lie, going back to the hotel or going out. Logically, it’s probably the latter, and Dean sees the opportunity to selfishly spend a little more time with Cas outside of work, so to speak.

“Yeah? Think maybe you could drop by The Roadhouse some time tonight? Ellen always saves a few tables for the vendors. I’ll probably head over there around eight or so if you wanted to say hi?” He hopes his voice sounds totally casual, instead of full of nerves like he feels.

“That… yes. I would like that, actually. I will be there,” Cas replies, his lips curled up just enough to be called a smile. “I’ll see you later tonight, Dean.”

“See ya, Cas.” He gives him a wink, which he feels embarrassed about later as he’s walking away, but he doesn’t turn around to look to see how Cas took it, if he’s rolling his eyes or blushing. Dean kind of hopes it’s the blushing.

~

Dean shows up to Ellen’s bar earlier than he told Cas, mainly because he was bored in his hotel room and nothing good was on, and because he needs to get started early on the drinks to calm his nerves about Cas.

He’s not quite sure what has caused the mood shift in Cas from last year’s festival to this year’s, but it kind of makes Dean hopeful that maybe the original goal he had of being friends with Cas could end up being something more than friends. He realizes that’s rather presumptuous of him without having even talked to Cas about any of this, but it had been Cas that had wanted Dean to eat with him, had stopped Dean to see what his plans were that night, had agreed to meet him. So maybe Dean wasn’t imagining this?

Of course, maybe he was, and this was just Cas’s way of trying to apologize for last year. It’s a weird way to apologize, but Cas has always kind of been a weird dude, not that Dean minds the oddness. It’s kind of endearing in a way.

Whatever the case, Dean is confused and he isn’t sure how things are going to play out with Cas tonight, hence why he shows up at the bar forty minutes before he said he would.

The place is crowded, but not jam-packed, several people Dean recognizes from the festival as vendors or staff already there, dancing, drinking, and laughing. Ellen is apparently playing both bartender and waitress tonight, and as she moves around the crowd dropping off drink orders, she spots Dean walking toward the bar.

“‘Bout time you showed up, Winchester. Thought you’d become an old man on me and retired to bed early!” Ellen says, pulling Dean in and down to her level so she can give him a kiss on the cheek.

“Oh man, no. Shoot me if it gets to that point, please.”

“Never! You get to grow old and get wrinkles and suffer like the rest of us.” She laughs and moves around so she’s back behind the bar, leaning over the counter in front of Dean.

“So… I heard a rumor that you and a certain someone might be getting along better this year… No fights on the horizon?”

Dean doesn’t even try to deny or downplay the rumor because it’s true, and he knows Ellen, and Ellen has known him long enough to know if he were lying. “Uh yeah, actually. It’s kind of weird, but good? It’s been good. He’s uh… I invited him to come here tonight.”

Ellen’s eyebrows lift. “Oh really? You know, he never comes here even though I invite him every year. Guess I wasn’t the person he wanted the invite from.”

Dean rolls his eyes although he can feel his cheeks heat. Ellen smirks while she starts pouring him what she has on tap. She passes it across to him, and he nods his thanks before taking a sip.

“When’s he supposed to come, or was the invite a ‘show up whenever’ all cool type of deal?”

Instead of rolling his eyes, he gives her a bitch face, which of course doesn’t faze her. “I told him I’d be here around eight, told him to come when he could.”

“Eight, huh? So that’s why you’re here at,” she looks at her watch, “seven fifteen?” 

“I wanted to have some time alone with you,” Dean says, wiggling his eyebrows.

“Uh huh. Well, sorry to disappoint, babe, but I’ve got work to do.” She slings a towel over her shoulder and starts filling up more pints of beer and setting them on a tray. “You know where our tables are, let Jo know if you want food, and for heaven’s sake, if y’all are going to make out, take it back to your hotel.”

“Ellen!” Dean says, scandalized, but Ellen just laughs, picks up her tray and walks away.

He watches as she goes back out into the crowd, handing out the drinks she had filled, picking up empty ones in exchange. He shifts his gaze from Ellen to the rest of the people mingling, and he recognizes a few from years past, but not many. The tables for the vendors are set up in the back close to the stage.

He doesn’t immediately sit over there, chooses a booth nearby instead, with a clear view of the door so he can see when Cas arrives, if he’ll arrive. Not that he thinks Cas won’t show up. He seemed excited about coming, so hopefully that wasn’t Dean’s imagination and wishful thinking.

The later it gets, the more people start arriving. Dean’s been trying not to look at his watch every few minutes and then back at the door, but it’s been hard. He’s people watched, called Jo over to order some potato skins and another beer, and Cas still hasn’t come. He sees the band that Ellen always gets to come out on the weekends start setting up their equipment on the stage, which means it’s almost nine.

Which is fine. He didn’t give Cas an exact time, and Cas had acted like he might have to do some other things. But… geez, Dean’s starting to feel like he’s being stood up even though this definitely isn’t a date.

Just before the band is about to go on, Dean catches a mess of dark hair walk through the door. He cranes his neck to see around the people that were in front of the man, and when he can finally get a clear look, he sees it is Cas.

Cas looks a little flustered, cheeks red. He is in a suit, which definitely hadn’t been what he’d been wearing earlier that day, and his tie is backwards. His eyes are scanning the crowd, so Dean stands and holds up a hand, waiting for Cas to find him. When he does, Cas’s lips curve up slightly, and he waves and starts making his way towards Dean.

“Sorry I’m later than I planned,” Cas says as he approaches.

“Don’t worry about it,” Dean says. He slides back into the booth, and Cas follows on the other side.

“I wasn’t quite sure where this was and got turned around. And I wasn’t sure how dressed up I should… but I feel like perhaps I overdressed,” Cas says, looking down at his suit and tie with a grimace.

“Lose the jacket and tie, and no one’ll be the wiser,” Dean says with a wink.

Cas’s already flushed cheeks turn darker, and it makes Dean smile wider. He waves Jo over while Cas takes Dean’s advice and sheds his suit coat and tie. He leaves the top couple buttons undone, and Dean tries not to stare.

“Ready for another round?” Jo asks when she gets to the table.

“Yeah I'll take another beer, and Cas?”

“I'll have the same,” Cas replies.

“Got it. Y'all want any food?”

Dean had eaten a little already, but he could always eat more.

“You hungry, Cas?”

Cas is eying the menu, but he looks a little overwhelmed and not sure what to pick. “I am hungry, but…” Cas says looking up at Dean from the menu.

“Give us some of those cheese fries with ranch to start,” Dean tells Jo, figuring he and Cas could share and if Cas is still hungry he can get something else.

“Okay. Holler if y'all need anything else,” Jo says before leaving to put in their order and grab their beers.

“I hope it's ok I ordered the fries, figured you could order something else after--”

“No it's alright, thank you. I didn't really know what to get. This isn't my usual… fare,” Cas says with a hand wave.

“Sorry. If you're uncomfortable, we don't--”

"No, no. It's okay." Cas puts a hand on Dean's to stop him. Dean tries to ignore the warm feeling he gets at the touch and the fact that Cas leaves it for far longer than necessary.

When he does remove his hand, Dean clears his throat. "So, how's business been treatin' ya?" Dean internally shakes his head at himself for the question.

Cas smiles. "It's been good, great, really. I've had a few custom orders and gained a few customers via word of mouth from that. I've had to hire a few people to help me around the shop, so that's good. How about you?"

Dean shrugs, "Same old, same old, I guess."

"Charlie still there?"

With a chuckle, Dean nods, trying to hide his surprise at Cas knowing Charlie. "Yup, still there. Giving me trouble as usual."

Cas smiles around a sip of his beer. "I like Charlie. She emails me every once in awhile."

Well, Dean can't hide his surprise at that comment. "You two email?"

Pausing, Cas nods. "She, um, reached out to me after... after what happened last year. She apologized for you, and we've been emailing back and forth ever since."

Dean thinks on this new information. Perhaps this is why Cas has had such a turnaround from last year and has been so nice to him. Maybe Charlie somehow convinced him of... Dean's niceness? stupidity? He's not sure. But, since Cas brought it up, Dean comes out and asks.

"Is that why you've been more... congenial? I figured you wouldn't even want to look at me, let alone talk to me, after what happened last year."

"I... Last year I was... for lack of a better way to say it, going through some things. I took it out on you because you were there and convenient and... you did kind of bug me. It's not an excuse, but an explanation. And, I'm sorry. But, yes, Charlie has... helped."

"What'd, she talk me up or something?"

Cas chuckles. "More like the opposite? It was good though. I had... seen you as... well, she helped me see things differently."

Dean makes a mental note to ask Charlie what exactly she had told Cas about him. Whatever it is she said, it's made Cas nicer towards him, friendly even, and he likes it. He knows he's been rather stupid about Cas in more ways than one, but maybe he can change things around. Maybe even be friends (or more if he lets himself get his hopes up) instead of civil colleagues.

"Is the different image you have of me holding up to the reality?"

Cas smiles, and Dean can detect a slight blush appear on his cheeks (but maybe it's the alcohol Cas has been drinking). "It is."

Conversation returns to more small talk instead of more serious matters when Jo brings their food, and Cas and Dean both order something a little more substantial when the cheese fries disappear between them. People from the festival, other vendors mostly, come by and say hi when they recognize either Dean or Cas or both. A few that know of or remember the incident from last year jokingly tell them they're glad the two of them made up. Both men laugh at the joke, but Dean thinks to himself that he's glad they did too.

The evening is pleasant, although Dean wishes it could go on longer. As it turns out, Cas is more hilarious with some alcohol in him.  He knows they both have an early morning ahead of them, though. Saturday is always the busiest day of the festival, and they both should get to bed to rest up.

Cas pays for their bill, insisting on it being his turn since Dean had paid for their lunch earlier. With Cas paying, it kind of feels like the whole evening was a date to Dean. He knows it's not, but he thinks about how nice it would be if it had been. Or if they go on another. He walks Cas to his car and wishes him a safe drive and that he'll see him tomorrow. Cas returns the sentiment and waves at Dean through the windshield as he drives away.

On the way back to the hotel and while he gets ready for bed once he's arrived, Dean replays the evening in his head: their conversation, the way Cas laughed at Dean's jokes, the blue of his eyes as he stared back at Dean. It all rolls around in Dean's head as he falls asleep, and he thinks of the possibilities, the potential that there is between them.

~

As Dean expected, Saturday is incredibly busy. From the start, there are people milling around his booth, asking questions, wondering about requests, looking at his display and the pictures from his previous pieces. His attention is constantly being requested from someone, so he doesn't even get a break to see how Cas is or have a conversation with him. From the corner of his eye, he can see that Cas is just as busy as he is, maybe even more so.

They finally get a brief reprieve around noon when most of the customers have decided to get lunch, and Dean takes a seat with a sigh. He looks over at Cas who is approaching him, sitting in the chair next to Dean.

"Busy morning?" Cas asks.

Dean nods. He reaches into the cooler next to his table and pulls out a bottled water and gestures with it to Cas, seeing if he would like one as well. Cas nods, and Dean hands him a bottle.

While they sit, taking a breather, Dean wonders if he should suggest one of them get lunch again, but with how busy it's been, he doesn't want either of them to have to be alone for very long with both booths to handle. And, because there's a lull at their booths, it more than likely means the lines at the food court booths are ridiculously long. He probably should have brought food instead of just drinks, but he hadn't quite been thinking clearly.

"Are you hungry?" Cas asks, interrupting Dean's thoughts.

"A little, yeah. I was wondering if I should bother fighting the crowds or just be hungry."

"I... um brought a few sandwiches. I have some extras if you'd like?"

"Um, yeah, actually. That'd be great."

He watches as Cas gets up and walks to his own booth, pulling out a few plastic bags from a cooler behind his table. He returns to his seat and hands Dean one of the bags. Inside there's a couple of what looks to be turkey sandwiches, a baggie full of chips, and a couple cookies. He glances over, and Cas has the same thing in his bag.

He doesn't want to assume, but it looks as if Cas had planned on sharing with Dean and had made him a lunch? He doesn't say anything though because he doesn't want to embarrass Cas or be mistaken in his assumption. Instead, he tucks into his sandwich and thanks Cas around a bite.

Unlike last night, neither of them talk while they eat, probably because they've had to talk to so many people already. It's a comfortable silence though. There's noise around them with some vendors doing the same as them and eating, or a few random customers still wandering around. The sounds of the festival are static enough to fill the space between them and keep it comfortable.

It's while they are eating that the woman from yesterday appears before them, a wide smile on her face when she sees them sitting together.

"You two are just the people I want to talk to." She approaches them and folds her arms, waiting.

Cas swallows his bite of food. "Can I help you?"

"Yes. You both can, actually. At least I hope so, or else this will all be for naught," she says.

"Both? What exactly are you wanting help with?" Dean asks. "You know there are crew members that can help you move something you've purchased if that--" Dean stops when the woman shakes her head and gives him a stern look.

"Do I look like I don't know that, young man? I don't need help moving any furniture. I need help making it!" She gives them a knowing smirk and a raised eyebrow.

"Alright," Cas says, "how exactly do you need us to do that?"

"You two are going to make it for me."

"Us? Look, lady, I know we're sitting together, but we have two different businesses that are separate," Dean says.

The woman gives him deadpan look. "I know. Don't mean you can't collaborate on something together, right? Like... Bing Crosby and David Bowie, or [Run DMC and Aerosmith](https://youtu.be/4B_UYYPb-Gk)."

Both men stare at her, confused. "What are you saying?" Cas finally asks.

"I would like to commission you both to work on a piece for me. I like both of your styles, and for the piece I have in mind, I think your styles will mesh well together. What d’ya say?" She has a warm smile on her face, and it makes Dean feel bad about turning her down because she seems genuinely excited about it. He knows he and Cas have been more friendly with each other, but having to work together on something is a whole different matter.

But then, Cas says, "What did you have in mind exactly?"

Dean looks at him, brow furrowed and a little angry. What's Cas saying? Cas is actually entertaining this lady? Would he be willing to work with Dean?

The woman's smile turns into more of a grin, like she's the cat that got the cream. And Dean knows however this turns out, he's done for.

~

It's the end of the day, most of the other customers have left and even most of the vendors have already closed their booths and covered their merchandise until the next day. Dean and Cas, however, are still there.

Dean had let Cas hear the lady out, whose name he discovered was Missouri, even though he thought the entire proposition was ridiculous. Even if they both agreed to work on the piece, he and Cas lived in two different states. How were they supposed to work on it? How long was it going to take them in that case? Would they have to take turns? Work on separate pieces and ship them to the other?

This was why they were still at the festival, in fact.

"I think this is a great opportunity, Dean. I like her idea, and I would like to work on it."

"That's all fine and good, Cas, but how the hell are we supposed to work on this together? Okay, fine, I build the structure, you do the detailing. But you live in Illinois, and I live in Kansas. What, are you going to just close up your shop for a couple months and come down to Kansas? Or me do the same and come up to Illinois?"

Cas shrugs. "You could stay with me if you'd like. I would be willing to go down to Kansas as well. I'm sure Charlie would let me stay with her if necessary."

 _Yeah, that's not going to happen_ , Dean thinks. There's no way he'd hear the end of it with Charlie if Cas stayed with her instead of him.

"You're serious? You'd be okay with that? Me staying with you or vice versa?"

Cas nods. "I really want to work on this piece... with you. I think it would be... fun." He blushes when he says it, and damn does Dean like it. "My shop is mostly online these days, and Anna could run the storefront for me like she is now, and email me any orders that might come in. Most people understand it takes a while for my pieces, so it would not be odd if I wouldn't be able to get to theirs for a few months."

Dean looks at Cas, not sure what he's looking for exactly, seeing if he actually wants to do this. If he's wanting to do it more for the project itself rather than working with Dean. At first, Dean had thought it was the former, that Cas liked the challenge of the project more than the fact it was with Dean. But, hearing him say he thought it'd be fun, how willing he was to drop everything to go to Kansas to work on it. Maybe he did want to work with Dean, too.

God, he is actually doing this, isn't he?

Dean rubs his hands over his face and sighs. "Okay, but you're staying with me, not Charlie. She's got a tiny apartment and has many a womanly caller. I've got a guest bedroom and plenty of room."

Cas stares back at him surprised. "Really? You're agreeing to take on the project? To work with me?"

"You're not the only one that thinks it'll be fun. I just wanted to be sure about the... logistics before I agreed to anything."

The smile on Cas's face is warm and soft, and Dean thinks he could get used to making Cas smile like that more often.

It's starting to get dark, so they agree to continue the discussion of logistics over dinner. They had promised Missouri that they would give her a decision the next day, and she had said that if they decided yes, she hoped they would have some ideas or sketches ready for her as well.

They wrap up their booths and then part ways to go wash up at their hotel rooms, agreeing to meet at Ellen's bar again to go over things. Ellen has to kick them out around 1am because they are still huddled together at a booth, papers scattered around them, empty plates pushed to the side, Cas with a pencil behind his ear, Dean with one in his mouth and his phone open to the calculator app.

Dean heads back to his hotel incredibly tired and partially regretting staying up so late with his early morning for the last day of the festival, but he doesn’t mind because he and Cas had hashed out a plan and a few sketches with loose measurements to show Missouri when she comes back. He falls asleep as soon as his head hits the pillow and dreams of Cas’s hands as they sketched and imagines how they’d look while carving those sketches, holding Dean’s hand, running over his body.

~

Many people come through on the last day of the festival, almost as much as the day before, but Dean only pays attention to Cas, with his eye out for Missouri. They've moved their chairs so they are closer together so they can talk during lulls in the crowd. They even share a lunch again, and Dean thinks he could get used to this, even lets himself get excited for when Cas will be spending more time with him in the near future.

Missouri shows up sometime after lunch, thoroughly pleased with both their answer and their sketches. She gives them her contact info, insists they take their time on the project and to let her know when it's complete. Dean starts to discuss pricing matters with her, but she insists she doesn’t want to hear it because she’ll pay whatever they ask. Without question, she gives them an advance of a hefty amount for supplies, which happens to be more than what they originally were going to charge her upfront. Again, she refuses to take any change, and Dean and Cas begrudgingly accept before she can do something silly like throw more money at them.

The previous night Dean and Cas had decided that it would be easier for Cas to go to Kansas than the other way around, so Dean will get to work on the structure when he gets back, while Cas finishes up his other projects and leaves his employee Anna with the shop before he joins Dean.

By the time the festival is closed, all the vendors are packing up to go home, the crew is taking down banners and tents, and Dean has Cas's phone number and a tentative time frame of when he'll come to Kansas. Dean had hoped he and Cas could get dinner again, celebrate the commission and close of the festival, possibly do a little flirting, but Cas is leaving to go home as soon as his booth is packed up.

"I'm very sorry about dinner, Dean," Cas says as he shuts the back of his truck. Dean had helped him with his last few pieces since the festival crew had been busy with the other vendors. "But, we'll have lots of dinners when I come down to Kansas." Cas gives Dean a grin, and Dean rolls his eyes and smiles.

"Yeah, I know. It's fine. Have a safe drive. I'll, uh, see you in about a month I guess," Dean says, a slight smirk on his face.

Cas steps up closer to Dean, soft smile playing on his lips. "I'll let you know when exactly soon."

"Sounds good."

They stare at each other for a moment, smiling. Dean has the distinct thought to lean in and kiss Cas goodbye, but he resists. It would be awkward and inappropriate and out of line, despite how much he wants to do it regardless.

He doesn't even know if Cas would want something like that anyway. He thinks maybe Cas might like him like that, but so far all their interactions have been of the friendly colleagues and now friends variety. How horrible would working on this project be if Dean jumped the gun and turned their tentative relationship into something awkward and unwanted on Cas's part?

So instead, Dean sticks his hand out for Cas to shake. He thinks the face Cas makes might be one of disappointment, but Dean's not sure if he's projecting.

"You drive safe as well, Dean. I'll talk to you later." Cas shakes his hand and leaves to climb into his truck.

Dean stands back to watch as Cas drives away, gives him a wave when Cas has successfully pulled out of the loading dock, and Cas returns it through the windshield.

After Cas is long out of sight, Dean walks to his own truck and climbs in, driving to his hotel. He thinks about his upcoming project with Cas and how Charlie might react when he tells her about it and the fact that he and Cas got along this year and that Cas is coming down and staying with him while they work on the project. He thinks it will probably be a mixture of smugness, pleasure, and slight surprise.

~

Turns out Charlie is not surprised in the slightest when Dean gives her the big news. Cas apparently had already told her about the collaboration over email before Dean even got home to the shop.

"He also told me you readily offered your place for him to stay," Charlie says, eyebrow quirked.

Dean ignores the comment while he finishes unloading the last chair still in the back of the truck.

Dean innocently shrugs and replies, "He said he could stay with you, but your place is tiny and I didn't want him cramping your style."

Charlie rolls her eyes and closes up the truck for Dean. "I could have crashed at Dorothy's or Gilda's. They wouldn't have minded... I wouldn't have either. Cas is my friend."

"Yeah, about that," Dean says. "Why didn't you say anything to me about that?"

Charlie looks a little sheepish, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "I... I didn't know how to tell you. I didn't want you to be mad at me or more mad at Cas. He's a good guy, you know. He was... last year wasn't good for him, and--"

Dean holds up his hand. "Yeah, I know. He told me. Apologized and everything. Although he didn't really give me specifics. Not that I need to know, but whatever. It's in the past. I don't mind that you're friends, by the way. I'm just a little hurt you didn't tell me, and I had to hear from Cas about how you guys have been emailing each other for a year now."

"I'm sorry. I should have told you."

Dean sighs and pulls Charlie into a hug. "It's fine. I know now. Although... if you feel bad, how about not teasing me about Cas and him staying with me."

Charlie lets out a loud laugh and pulls out of the hug.  "Fat chance, buddy." She walks away back into the front of the store.

Well, it was worth a try.

~

Charlie is quite relentless in her teasing in the week leading up to Cas's arrival. Dean does his best to ignore it, working more in the back of the shop getting their piece ready enough for Cas to work on it and making Charlie stay up front. It doesn't really work, but it gives him bouts of reprieve at least.

The day before Cas is set to show up, Dean splits his time between the shop and his house. Both are mostly clean, but something about Cas makes him double check everything again--that he has extra sheets and towels, that he’s done the dishes, that there’s enough workspace in the shop for Cas to set his tools and work, that his part of the piece is done and ready.

Charlie giggles to herself as she watches Dean run around trying to make sure everything is in order, and it’s a testament to how stressed he is that he doesn’t even make the time to scowl at her about it. A few people come in, but he lets Charlie handle it, as his mind is elsewhere. Finally, long after closing time of their shop, Charlie comes into the back and yells at Dean to go home and sleep or else he’ll be a zombie when Cas gets there. He acquiesces and heads out, letting Charlie lock everything up.

When he gets home and makes himself something to eat, he wonders how things are going to be with Cas, not only in the shop but in his house. He has a guest bedroom, all made up for Castiel stay in, but it’s not a big place, and they will most definitely be in each other’s spaces for the majority of the day, either in the workshop or at home.

He and Cas have talked here and there, and Dean has sent him progress pictures of the piece, getting his feedback on certain things that would help him in his design, providing measurements, etc. Dean is comfortable enough in saying they’ve definitely become more than just colleagues, and while he wants to go ahead and label them as friends, he’s not sure if that will be different once they’re actually standing face to face.

He’s hopeful that everything will go smoothly--Cas has been friendly, and occasionally flirty, in his messages to Dean--but who knows what will end up happening? Cas will more than likely stay for a month, given how detailed his work is, and a month is a long time to spend with someone, especially when that someone is as attractive and knowledgeable and skilled as Castiel. Dean just hopes that he’ll survive it with his heart and dignity intact.

~

Dean pretends his heart does _not_ jump into his throat when he hears Castiel being greeted by Charlie with enthusiasm in the front of the shop. He’s been in the back working ( _“I am not hiding, Charlie, shut up.”_ ) and trying very hard not to watch the clock (because Cas’s time of arrival was an estimate anyway; it was a long drive). He takes a deep breath, well more like a few, before dusting off his hands and stepping out of the back to the front where Cas is telling Charlie about his drive up.

Castiel stops mid-sentence to look up at Dean and smile. “Hello, Dean. It’s good to see you again.”

“Hey, Cas. How was the trip?” Dean asks with a smile, stepping up beside Charlie and leaning his hip on the counter next to them.

Castiel shrugs. “It was fine. Nothing eventful except for some patches of construction.”

It’s afternoon already, but Dean still asks, “Are you hungry? There’s a couple good places nearby we could grab something.”

Cas shakes his head. “I stopped to get something on my way into town. Thank you, though.”

“Well do you, uh, want to drop off your tools in the back and then follow me to my place so you can rest or?” Dean feels awkward, knows he sounds awkward, and he is ignoring the judgement he can feel coming from Charlie at this interaction.

“That would be nice, yes. Let me go get my things,” Castiel says with a nod, turning to head back out of the shop, the doorbell chiming as he exits.

Dean stares after him, unsure what to do, and when he looks at Charlie, her eyebrows are up and she’s definitely giving him a judgey look.

“Well?” she says, her head bobbing a little in a gesture that Dean isn’t sure how to interpret. “You going to make him carry everything by himself, Dean? Go help him!” She waves her hand at the door, and Dean snaps into action to obey her suggestion, seeing her roll her eyes as he follows Castiel out.

He takes a moment to admire Castiel bent over the trunk of his car, and then feels immediately guilty for doing it. He clears his throat as he comes to stand beside him.

“Can I help with anything?” he asks when Cas looks up at him.

“Oh, um, yes, actually,” Cas says, leaning back over to pull a long case out of the trunk. “Can you carry this? I think I have everything else.”

Dean accepts the case and waits until Cas has gathered the rest of his things, two more cases, and has closed the lid of the trunk before leading them back inside the shop and into the back work area. Dean nods his thanks at Charlie, who holds the doors open for them, and gestures with his head for Cas to follow him over to the corner where he’s cleared off space for him.

“I don’t know if this will be enough for you, but I can clear some more stuff if I need to.” Dean gestures to the workbench in front of him before setting down the case he was carrying.

“This is fine,” Cas replies, setting his cases down on the bench. He looks around the shop, and Dean can’t help but feel that Cas is scrutinizing the space and judging him on it.

He did clean, but he’s sure it’s nothing like Cas’s. Cas seems like the type to have all of his things organized, probably even has labels for everything. Dean’s lucky if he remembers to put his tools back on the shelf. It’s not that he doesn’t care for his tools, which is not the case; he just doesn’t see the point of putting everything on a shelf when he’s going to have to pull them back out again the next day. He and Charlie know where everything is, and that’s good enough.

“You have a nice space,” Cas says, taking Dean a little by surprise given his thoughts just now.

“Uh, thanks, Cas. I knew I had company coming,” Dean says with a grin, which causes Cas’s lips to curl up slightly.

“My shop is not nearly as big,” Cas continues. “I’m kind of jealous you have so much room.”

“Really?”

Cas nods and walks away from Dean, as if to get a better look at Dean’s tools and a better feel of the workshop.

“Most of the things I make are small, so there’s no need to have a huge area. But, it would be nice to spread out.”

“Well, you’re more than welcome to spread out here. Just let me know what you need or want out of the way.”

Dean’s eyes follow Cas as he walks around, and he realizes he doesn’t feel protective or defensive when he sees Cas’s fingers trail over some of his tools. It’s surprising since he sometimes feels that way even when Charlie uses something. With Cas though, he feels kind of honored and a little proud.

Cas stops when he comes across a large piece, covered with a sheet. He looks over his shoulder at Dean, a question in his eyes.

“Is this…,” he starts, pointing to the sheet.

Dean grins and comes to stand beside Cas. “Yep. Wanna see?” Dean asks, even though he’s already got his hand on the sheet and starting to pull it off. Cas nods and watches as Dean flings the cloth up and away to reveal a large desk.

It’s smooth but unstained and a perfect blank canvas for Cas. Cas’s eyes widen slightly, and Dean recognizes the look as an artist imagining what his blank canvas will turn into. A mixture of nervousness and delight swirls through Dean when he sees how Cas’s eyes pass over the table. When Cas gets closer, bending to examine the legs and feet, Dean tries to keep his gaze fixed on the desk.

After a few moments, Dean clears his throat. “So, uh, what do ya think?” He tries to make it sound casual and nonchalant, but nervousness seeps into his voice, making him sound small and quiet.

Cas looks up at Dean, his gaze intense but sincere. “It’s beautiful, Dean. You did a wonderful job.”

Dean can feel his cheeks heat at the praise, and he hopes to god it’s not showing on his face. He shrugs like it’s nothing, but the gesture seems rude given Cas’s compliment. He rubs the back of his neck and mumbles, “Thanks.”

Wanting to get far away from this moment, he clears his throat and asks, “So, did you want to get started right away and be here for a while, or did you want to take it easy and rest at my place?” He winces internally at how that last part sounds.

Cas, though, doesn’t seem to notice the awkwardness of the statement. “It was a long drive. I would much prefer to rest, but if you need to finish anything here, I can wait.”

“Nah,” Dean waves his hand, “Charlie can handle things the rest of the day. C’mon, you can follow me to my house.”

Cas nods and steps out behind Dean to return to the front of the store.

~

After saying their goodbyes to Charlie on the way out, Dean and Cas caravan over to Dean’s house. It’s not far, only about ten minutes from the shop, and while it’s not by any means a shack or falling apart (Dean’s good about updating and maintenance on it), it’s rather humble.

The house has character, which is what Dean defensively says to his brother Sam when he comes to visit and complains about the low light switches and short ceilings (“It’s not the house’s fault you’re gargantuan. Stay in a hotel next time then!”). Charlie likes to call it Dean’s cozy bachelor pad, and Dean doesn’t mind it. It works for him. It’s only him, and most of his life is at the workshop. He just needs a place to sleep, eat, and shower, so the two bedroom, one bathroom house is perfect for his needs.

Bypassing his usual routine of parking in the garage because Cas is following him, Dean pulls up to the front of his house and gets out as Cas does the same, popping his trunk to get his bags. For someone staying close to a month, Cas only had a small suitcase and a toiletry bag. Dean doesn’t comment on it, figuring Cas to be a rather minimalist type of person, and holds the front door open for Cas to follow him in.

Despite knowing for a while now that Cas was coming and staying with him, actually seeing him standing in his entryway makes it a little more real. Dean thought he was prepared enough to share space with the man he’s had a crush on for a while, but now that it’s happening, he’s not prepared at all.

Maybe he should have let Cas stay with Charlie, then Cas would at least have the chance to be away from Dean in the evenings. He probably still could, but he also feels like it’s kind of too late. Cas is here, awkwardly standing in his wrinkled trench coat, his bag set down by his feet on the tile of the entryway. It’s fine. Dean can handle it. It’s no big deal.

“Your room is over here,” Dean says, pointing down the hall. “You can drop off your bags and then I can give you the grand tour.”

Leading the way down the hall with Cas close behind, Dean stops at the first room and opens the door wider, gesturing for Cas to go in.

The room is simple. There’s a bed, a dresser, a small closet, and a window with a simple coat of light blue paint on the walls. Cas sets his luggage by the bed, shrugs out of his coat and lays it down on the bed. He turns to Dean with a small smile on his face.

“Thank you again for letting me stay with you.”

“No problem, Cas.” Already turning to leave, he waves his hand over his shoulder for Cas to follow.

The next door in the hallway is the bathroom. After Dean flips the light on, he points to the cupboard above the toilet. “There’s extra towels and things in there.” He points down the hall, the last room along it and says, “I have more in my room and blankets and stuff too if you need it." 

He steps around Cas to walk back towards the front door, continuing past it and into the living room where there’s a couch, a few chairs, and a big screen TV. “You’re welcome to watch whatever you’d like. The remotes are pretty easy to figure out.” He moves into the kitchen and says, “And you’re welcome to anything in the fridge and pantry. If I’m out of something or there’s something you want I don’t have, let me know and I can run and get it.” 

Dean holds up his hands, as if to say, “well, that’s it.” After being quiet for most of the “tour,” Cas finally says, “You have a lovely home, Dean. Thank you again.” 

“You’re welcome.” Dean feels weird about Cas thanking him so much, but he realizes that Cas is just trying to be nice and a good houseguest. “Well, uh, I’ll let you get some rest.”

With a smile, Cas nods and disappears down the hallway and into the guest bedroom, presumably to unpack and take a nap.

While trying to keep it down in case Cas is sleeping, he keeps himself busy, watches some TV and texts Charlie, who is trying to get him and Cas to go out for dinner that night. He's up for it, but he has to wait and see how Cas feels about it.

After a few hours, Castiel finally emerges from his room in jeans and a T-shirt, his hair flattened on one side, and Dean takes a guess as to why.

“Have a good nap?” Dean asks, sitting up slightly from the couch as he turns off the TV.

Slowly, Cas nods, “I did. It was a very comfortable bed. I didn't mean to sleep as long as I did.” Cas ducks his head as he says it, like he’s embarrassed. 

“No big deal. Are you hungry?”

“I am a little, yes.”

“Charlie wants us to take you out for dinner, but if you're not feeling up to it, we can order in?”

“No, we can go out. I don't mind. Should I change?”

Dean eyes travel down Cas’s body because hey, he was given permission so he's going to, and he shakes his head. “You look good.” Cas blushes a little at the statement, but Dean continues, “I think Charlie was wanting to go to The Bunker, which is pretty casual, so what you have on is fine.” Dean stands and gestures to himself in holey, dirty jeans and a worn shirt. “I, on the other hand, look like a mess.”

“It's an attractive mess though,” Cas says, very quietly, but Dean catches it and feels his face heat. He doesn't think Cas wanted him to hear it, so he pretends he didn't.

“I'll text Charlie to meet us over there and after I change we can go?”

“Alright. I'll just wait here then.” Cas moves to sit on the edge of the couch, ready for Dean to return.

Once Dean’s changed (and maybe tried to style his hair a little), he and Cas leave in his Impala and drive to The Bunker. The parking lot isn’t very crowded, and when they go inside, they are seated fairly quickly. It’s still early for the dinner crowd, but old-man jokes aside, Dean prefers it so he can actually hear the conversation.

He and Cas make small talk while they wait for Charlie, Dean telling Cas about a few of the main sites he should try to visit while he’s here, places to avoid, what the best thing on the menu is, etc. It’s not awkward, per se, but Dean feels like he’s talking too much, especially with Cas barely saying anything except for a few nods and short interjections.

He’s grateful when Charlie finally arrives because she helps liven the conversation, and since it seems she knows Cas better than Dean, he’s a little more open with her.

“So, Cas,” Charlie says, “how do you think you’re going to like Dean’s hovel?” She laughs to herself when she says it, and Dean rolls his eyes.

Cas smiles and replies, “It is quite comfortable. I don’t think it’s hovel-like though? Dean seems to have taken very good care of it.” He directs a small smile to Dean.

“Hmmm, he must have fancied the place up for you then,” Charlie says with a wink. Dean stares at her, hoping his face is conveying enough of a ‘shut-the-hell-up’ vibe that she’ll get the hint. She of course does, but just gives him a shit-eating grin. “You ever get tired of the bachelor pad, you let me know.”

“I think I’ll be alright, but thank you though,” Cas says. Charlie gives Dean a look, but he chooses to ignore whatever the look can mean. He’s sure it’s some kind of teasing related to him and Cas.

“Speaking of,” Dean says, “you ready to head out?” They had all finished eating a while ago and have been nursing a few beers and talking for the last hour or so, but Dean’s starting to get tired.

Cas nods and Charlie shrugs, like she could stay out longer but won’t since they’re leaving. Dean takes care of the bill before they head out, insisting that it’s fine when Cas puts up a little of a fight (Charlie, of course, doesn’t). They say bye to Charlie and head home.

“When do you usually go into the shop in the mornings?” Cas asks when they arrive.

“Depends, but usually I get there around seven or seven-thirty. Charlie’s usually there by eight.”

“Would it be alright if I accompany you in the mornings for the first few days?”

“Of course, Cas. Whatever you’d like. If you want to go earlier or something, just let me know.”

“Thank you, Dean.”

“You don’t have to keep thanking me, Cas. It’s fine. I’m glad to have you here.” Slightly red-cheeked, Cas nods. Dean continues, “Anyway, you’re welcome to watch TV or anything. I think I’m going to get ready for bed, though.”

“I think I might as well. I brought a few books that I can read in my room until I’m tired.”

Dean shrugs and starts walking down the hall, Cas following behind him. Of course, because they are both getting ready for bed at the same time, it means they both end up in their pajamas—Dean in the same worn shirt and sweats from earlier, and Cas in a rather baggy T-shirt and quite adorable, Dean thinks, plaid pajama pants—in the bathroom to brush their teeth.

At first Cas makes a move to back up to return when Dean is done, but Dean shakes his head and pulls Cas in the bathroom, stepping to the side of the counter so Cas has room. They take turns using the water and end up kind of staring at each other in the mirror while they brush. Dean gives Cas a wink in the mirror, and Cas’s cheeks pink up, causing Dean to smile around his brush. In retaliation, Cas gently elbows him in the side to finish up at the sink to rinse.

After they’re through, they say goodnight and leave for their own rooms. In his head, Dean wonders if this is how it’ll be every night with Cas. It’s kind of nice, very domestic, but Dean doesn’t want to get used to the feeling. It might not mean anything to Cas, or he might not feel the same way about this situation.

~

The next morning proves to be a little less domestic and more awkward than the previous night, and Cas might have embarrassingly seen a little more of Dean than he would have liked in the morning.

It was early, Dean hadn’t had his coffee yet, and he temporarily forgot in his morning stupor that he had a guest. His laundry basket is in his room, and he’s normally completely alone in his own house, which means he walks buck-naked to his bathroom to shower. Only this time he is not completely alone in his house and Cas just happened to emerge from his bedroom to make his way to the bathroom at the exact moment that Dean had left his bedroom in the nude. It was a split second of shock and horror before both of them darted a hasty retreat to their bedrooms, with Dean refusing to come out until he was sure Cas was completely through with his own morning routine. 

They both choose to ignore it and silently agree to never speak of it again.

By the end of the week, they have a kind of routine set in place. They take turns getting ready in the mornings, Cas showering first while Dean starts a pot of coffee, and then Dean showers next while Cas makes something for them both to eat for breakfast. In the evenings, they come home and if they aren’t too tired, one of them will cook something, otherwise they pick up something on the way home or order delivery. They watch TV or get to know each other more while they eat and after as they let their food settle, and then, they end the night standing side by side brushing their teeth before saying goodnight.

In that first week, Cas rides with Dean to and from the shop. Dean leaves him be for the most part while he works on other pieces. Every once in awhile he’ll come over to see what Cas is up to and then ask what he’d like for lunch. Cas takes his time mapping everything out and drawing his design on paper first to the exact measurements of Dean’s desk.

After Cas has done it all on paper, he starts to transfer it in pencil to the desk, and very slowly starts carving pieces. He’s very methodical in his process, and Dean feels bad bothering him even for lunch. He still does, though, because the man’s gotta eat, and he at least seems grateful for the break when Dean asks and brings him something.

During the second week, though, Cas warns Dean that he might not hear him when he asks about lunch and tells Dean he will get something on his own. Dean doesn’t quite believe him when he says it, so he gets a sandwich or packs an extra one for Cas anyway and sets it beside him.

As the weeks progress, Cas also starts to drive separately from Dean, staying later in the shop than even Dean can stand. So, Dean comes home alone to an empty house, and even though he had spent years doing that before Cas came along, now it just makes him feel lonely. Which, geez, it’s only been a week and a half of the guy staying with him, and he’s already so used to having him there that he misses him when he’s not?

Even though Cas stays later, he at least tries to be back to Dean’s house by nine or ten, so Dean waits up for him. He knows he doesn’t have to, that Cas is a grown man who can take care of himself and knows his way around the town well enough to know how to get from the shop to Dean’s, but he does it anyway. He tries to lie to himself in thinking it’s because he’s not tired and he happens to be up anyway, but he knows it’s not true. He feels pathetic when he thinks about the real reason though.

When Cas does finally walk in, he’s tired and dragging, and he’s always so grateful when Dean fixes him a plate of leftovers. At first Cas eats in the kitchen, which is awkward for Dean because he feels like he has to go in the kitchen as well so Cas isn’t alone in there, but then it turns into Dean watching Cas eat. But now, Cas has taken to eating his dinner on the couch next to Dean, voicing his opinion or asking questions about whatever horrible programming Dean has decided to watch that night.

They’ve definitely gotten closer in the weeks that Cas has stayed with Dean, and their comfort sharing space with one another has grown. Cas sits closer on the couch to Dean in the evenings, and a few times nods off on his shoulder until Dean gently nudges him awake and tells him that he’d be more comfortable sleeping in his bed. Even in the shop, Dean finds himself gravitating towards Cas as he works, watching with awe and amazement as the piece takes shape under Cas’s hands.

He can tell that Cas has grown more comfortable with him as well, letting Dean linger over his shoulder as he works, which at first Dean hesitated to do because Cas’s reaction was usually one of annoyance or he’d grow stiff and stop working. Now, though, Dean can watch Cas, for hours if he wants and doesn’t have his own work to do, and Cas will let him, talk to him about what he’s doing, what he’s having a hard time with or what he has left to complete.

Of course this closeness has only made Dean fall for Cas more and wish he had more courage to tell Cas how he feels or ask Cas if he sees Dean as anything more than just a friend. Cas has opened up more with Dean, sure, but that doesn’t mean he has feelings for Dean. It’s hard to get a read on the guy, and although Charlie has rolled her eyes and told Dean that Cas has been flirting with him, he doesn’t want to assume that it means he likes him. 

And even if it does, Dean’s going to need it to be more explicitly stated before he gets his hopes up, despite how high they are already and probably shouldn’t be. He can tell from the way Cas is working and when he looks at the piece that Cas is almost finished. They won’t have much longer until Cas leaves and whatever bubble they’ve been in together will pop, and Dean’s not sure anything else will come of a potential romantic relationship between them when it does. 

~

On one particularly memorable evening, somewhere during the third going on fourth week of Cas’s stay, Cas comes home later than normal, around eleven-forty-five. Dean was starting to worry, to the point where he was thinking about driving to the shop and forcing Cas to stop his work and come home because he needs sleep.

Dean is so relieved to see Cas home that without thinking he envelops him in a hug as soon as he walks in the door. He realizes too late that that’s not really how someone would greet a sort of friend and colleague-turned-house guest, and as he’s about to quickly step back and apologize, Cas’s arms wrap around his waist.

After a moment of them standing in an embrace, Dean interrupts the silence, “Glad you made it home. I was starting to worry.”

Cas doesn’t respond, at least not verbally, but Dean can feel Cas’s arms get a little tighter around his waist. A few moments more pass, and Dean starts to wonder if Cas has fallen asleep in his arms. He wouldn’t be surprised, honestly. Lately, Cas has left for the shop earlier than Dean and stayed later, and he can’t say for certain that Cas has eaten three square meals a day.

“I’ve got some leftover lasagna in the fridge. You want me to heat you up some?” Dean asks, wondering if that’s why Cas is practically using Dean as a means to remain standing.

Eventually Cas sighs and nods, his chin digging into Dean’s shoulder with the movement. With a chuckle, Dean asks, “Think you can make it to the kitchen on your own, or do I need to carry you?”

“Could you carry me?” Cas asks, a smile in his voice that Dean can hear and knows that it means Cas is joking. It hadn’t taken Dean very long to recognize when Cas is teasing. He had always seemed like such a serious guy, but now after this last month, Dean knows about Cas’s playful side. Maybe it’s stupid to think so, but Dean feels kind of special to know and recognize these things about Cas, like he’s that much closer, that much more important to him.

“I’m not even going to dignify that with a response because it’ll only offend you, not me.”

Cas huffs a little and pulls back from Dean, but Dean leaves an arm around his shoulders to guide him to the kitchen. 

Once Cas is in a seat, Dean moves about the kitchen, pulling out the leftovers, getting a plate and utensils. 

“What would you like to drink?” Dean asks as soon as the lasagna is in the microwave heating up. 

“Water, please,” comes Cas’s reply, quiet. 

When he sets everything down in front of Cas, he takes the seat next to him. “We could go in the living room, if you--” Dean starts only to stop when Cas shakes his head. 

“If I sit anywhere more comfortable than this chair, I’ll fall asleep.” The comment makes Dean grin.

“Alright,” he replies, because for some reason he feels like he should. He watches as Cas starts eating, feeling a little weird doing so but not wanting to leave. Cas doesn’t seem to mind, and neither of them attempt conversation.

It should feel awkward, but it’s a comfortable silence. Cas eats rather quickly, proving he must have been starving. It’s not until the sound of chair legs scraping against the tile of the floor as Cas gets up to take his dishes to the sink that Dean realizes he had dozed off. He stands from his own seat stretching his arms above his head, eyes closed while he yawns. As he lowers his arms, his eyes opening, he catches Cas staring at him, body turned slightly toward him.

Quickly, Cas turns his back towards him, gaze returning to the sink while he rinses his dishes off before putting them in the dishwasher. If Dean had been more alert, he might have questioned why Cas had been staring at him, but, given how late it is and how tired he is, he doesn’t comment on it.

“Want to watch something?” Dean asks, thumbing behind himself at the TV in the living room that’s still on, the sound muted.

“It’s kind of late. Are you sure?”

With a shrug, Dean replies, “I at least want to finish the episode I was watching. Then I’ll call it a night.”

Cas nods and follows Dean into the living room. He takes a place right next to Dean on the couch, which isn’t odd to him because they’ve been drifting closer to each other as the nights passed anyway. 

It takes a few moments for Dean to rewind back to a familiar scene, and then he pushes play and settles in further into the couch, arm draped over the back of it. The show isn’t one Cas is familiar with and normally Dean would pause to explain who is who or what’s happened so far, but Cas doesn’t ask, so he doesn’t say. Instead, Cas mirrors Dean, leaning back into the couch to get comfortable.

When Dean wakes up, it’s to darkness, the only light coming from the digital display on the DVR that says that it’s 2:30am. There’s a blanket over him, and more importantly, a hand that is definitely not his is resting on his chest. His mind is slow and foggy with sleep, but he realizes that Cas is still on the couch next to him, cuddled up to his side, his head resting on Dean’s shoulder, arm draped over Dean.

The last thing Dean remembers is seeing Dr. Sexy push a nurse into an elevator, which means Cas must have woken up sometime between then and now to turn off the TV and get a blanket. But, why did he choose to lay back down and curl up under the blanket with Dean? Wouldn’t he have just laid a blanket on Dean and gone to sleep in his own bed?

He clearly didn’t though, and Dean’s not sure how to take the fact that Cas choose to sleep on an uncomfortable, old couch _with_ Dean instead of alone in his nice comfortable bed. It’s giving him a kind of a giddy feeling in his chest, if he’s being honest. He wants to try to go back to sleep and pull Cas in a little closer, but logically he knows his back is going to kill him if he stays in this partially upright position on the couch any longer.

Trying not to jostle Cas is more hassle than it’s worth, so he gently nudges Cas’s head with his shoulder, running a hand down his back.

“Hey, Cas,” he almost-whispers. Cas stirs slightly but doesn’t move, so Dean nudges him again.

A low, questioning, almost whiny hum comes from Cas, and Dean bites back a chuckle. “Cas, come on, let’s get to bed.”

It takes a few moments, but Cas slowly opens his eyes enough for Dean to recognize that he’s awake enough to hear him. Eventually, Cas finally pushes himself up and off of Dean and the couch, Dean standing soon after. Cas moves to fold the blanket they had been using, but Dean stops him with a hand on his.

“Don’t worry about that. We’ll take care of it later.”

Groggily, Cas nods and drops the blanket back on the sofa and starts shuffling around the coffee table towards the hall. Dean lets Cas drag him, not letting go of his hand, both because he doesn’t want to and because he wants to make sure Cas makes it to bed. He can’t be sure Cas is really awake right now or not.

When they reach Cas’s bedroom, Dean makes to let go of Cas to continue down the hall to his own, only Cas doesn’t let go. Instead he continues pulling Dean into his room, and even tries to pull him down on the bed, but Dean resists. Cas seems to wake up a little more at that and frowns.

In his head, Dean tries to come up with something he could say, a joke about how Cas doesn’t need him to tuck him in or something, but he doesn’t. He stands in front of Cas by his bedside and watches while Cas lays down on the bed. He shouldn’t even be in the room, but he can’t quite look away.

And when Cas looks back up to him, his hand outstretched again to catch Dean’s to tug him down, this time Dean goes willingly, not able to resist a second time.

Slowly he climbs into the bed beside Cas, even lets Cas pull his arm to move him closer, their positions almost similar to how they were on the couch--Cas’s head pillowed on Dean’s shoulder, his torso pressed against Dean’s side. It’s warm, and far more comfortable than it had been on the couch, but Dean doesn’t want to get his hopes up. Maybe Cas is just a cuddler who’s been touch-starved since he’s been here. He didn’t seem like he was fully awake, so perhaps he’ll wake up and have no recollection of pulling Dean into bed with him.

Part of him wants to wait until Cas falls asleep again and then slip out quietly to retreat to his own room. Part of him wants to stay curled up around Cas, wrap his arms around him and hold him the rest of the night. But he can’t decide what to do or what he should do or if he should do anything but pretend that this is just an act of companionship that means nothing.

“Go to sleep, Dean,” Cas mumbles into his shoulder, making Dean huff.

“Maybe I was,” Dean answers back petulantly.

“Uh huh.” Dean can hear the smirk in Cas’s voice. 

Now that they are both essentially awake, Dean wants to ask what this is, what it means, if he’s sure he wants Dean to stay, if maybe it would be better if he left. Cas seems to realize that Dean isn’t obeying his wish for him to sleep, so he tilts his head up, lifting himself up on his elbow enough to look down at Dean.

“Are you uncomfortable with this?” Cas asks. His face is illuminated by the light from the street lamps seeping in from the blinds, and Dean can see the concern there.

“No, but… I just… don’t know what this means?” God, he sounds so insecure, but he needs to know. He’s not sure he can handle this being nothing or even just a fling; he’s liked Cas for too long for that not to hurt him to his core.

With a nod, Cas leans in closer to Dean, a small smile playing on his lips. “I’m too tired to put this any other way. I like you, Dean, have for quite some time now, and for now, I’d like to sleep with you. If you’d like for that to be a different interpretation, I wouldn’t mind, but it will have to wait until I’m more awake.”

The bluntness of the statement surprises a laugh out of Dean. “I guess that clears things up.”

“Good,” Cas says before pecking Dean on the cheek and returning to his previous snuggling position. Because he’s allowed to now apparently, Dean pulls Cas in a little closer, turning slightly on his side to give Cas a kiss on the forehead.

“Night, Cas.” 

“Good night, Dean.”

~

In the morning, Dean wakes up incredibly hot, and he idly wonders in his half-asleep state if the air conditioner broke or something. He moves to get up and realizes he can’t because he’s trapped by a few limbs that are definitely not his. Then, it all comes flooding back what happened that night, how he’s in bed with Cas, who is wrapped around him under the sheets. So… not the air conditioner then.

He strains his neck to try to look at the clock on the nightstand and is surprised that it’s almost eight-thirty, much later than he or Cas normally get up these days. If he were to find wherever he put his phone, he’s sure he’ll have a barrage of missed texts and calls from Charlie asking where he is, if he’s sick, if he’s doing the nasty with Cas finally, if he’s planning on coming in at all today, etc. He can picture it, so he doesn’t need to find it now anyway. Besides, he’s pretty comfortable with Cas.

His bladder thinks otherwise, so he tries his best not to jostle Cas too much as he untangles himself from the trap of Cas’s limbs and goes to the bathroom. He takes care of his business and debates whether brushing his teeth now would be too presumptuous with regarding Cas’s words last night. It’s not like Cas has gotten to do the same, and he’s kind of hungry, so maybe he should make breakfast? He had pictured crawling back into bed with Cas, but maybe he should shower and make pancakes. 

He’s torn from his thoughts by a laugh in the doorway. He turns to find Cas staring at him, his shoulder pressed against the door frame.

“Your thoughts are so loud,” Cas says. Dean frowns, but Cas ignores him. “I started the coffee,” he adds, tugging on Dean’s arm to pull him out of the bathroom so he can take his place. “Make us a mug?” Cas adds with a coy smile before shutting the bathroom door on Dean.

Breakfast it is, Dean thinks, padding his way to the kitchen. He stops to check his phone on the counter in the entryway, and sure enough, there are plenty of texts from Charlie, just like he thought there’d be. He doesn’t even bother reading through them, just sends a quick one saying he’s sorry but he’ll be coming in late. Then he starts pulling out ingredients to make pancakes, setting out a couple mugs for the coffee when it finishes.

He’s just turning on the oven when Cas appears, looking a little more awake but still rumpled from bed, his hair everywhere and his baggy sleep shirt hanging loosely enough so his collarbone is visible. Dean could get used to the sight every morning, and thinks maybe… if what Cas had said last night holds true, he might get to see Cas like that every morning.

The smile on his face when he sees Cas is bright, and he doesn’t bother hiding it. Cas comes in closer, looking over Dean’s shoulder as he starts cracking a few eggs into a mixing bowl filled with flour.

“Pancakes?” Cas asks, shuffling toward the coffeemaker and pouring him and Dean some of the steaming liquid into the mugs Dean had set out.

“Yup. I told Charlie we’d be in later, so I figured might as well make it a long morning since we’re already late.” Dean looks over his shoulder at Cas, a wide grin on his face. He continues mixing the batter, about to start the first batch when he feels Cas stand right next to him.

“You should put that down,” Cas says, eyeing the bowl and the spoon that Dean is holding in his hands.

“Uh, why? Do you not want pancakes?” Dean asks, his brow furrowed in confusion.

“I do, but I don’t want you to spill it.”

Dean sets the bowl down, turns more towards Cas, and opens his mouth to protest that this isn’t his first time making pancakes but doesn’t get a chance to say anything because his arms are suddenly full of Cas and he’s being pulled into a kiss.

It’s definitely not how he had pictured it, and yes, he had pictured kissing Cas plenty of times, but this is real. He lets himself melt into the kiss, releasing the tension he had initially by being taken by surprise. He wraps his arms around Cas’s waist, pulling him in closer. When Cas’s tongue licks across the seam of Dean’s lips, Dean opens his mouth on a moan, deepening the kiss.

He hopes Cas won’t mind the lack of minty freshness on his part because he doesn’t mind the taste of coffee on Cas. Before they can get too carried away, which they’re pressed against each other enough that Dean can feel there are parts of themselves interested in getting carried away, Dean breaks the kiss and pulls back, admiring the slight shine on Cas’s wet lips, his eyelashes as he slowly opens his eyes to look at Dean.

“I’ve been wanting to do that for a while,” Cas says, his breath warm against Dean’s lips. They’re still almost nose to nose with each other, neither of them wanting to separate just yet.

“Me, too. What took us so long?”

Cas shrugs. “We’re dumb.”

Dean chuckles. “Yeah, we kind of are. Don’t tell Charlie we’ve admitted to it though.”

The smile Cas gives Dean is bright. “Of course not.”

Dean gives one more kiss to Cas before pushing him gently away. “These pancakes won’t make themselves, and I’m hungry.” With a shake of his head, Cas lets Dean start cooking, setting down a mug of coffee for Dean before pulling out plates and silverware. It’s rather domestic, and Dean’s chest is warm with the thought of having such domesticity be a regular occurrence, having Cas always in his space, having Cas wrapped around him when he went to bed and again when he woke up in the morning, and pulling him into kisses.

He’s probably getting ahead of himself, isn’t even sure of the logistics of being in a relationship with Cas since he lives in another state with a business and life over there. So, he focuses on the present, of the feeling of Cas’s chin on his shoulder and his hands on his hips when he comes to check on Dean’s progress with the pancakes, of the sound of Cas’s joyful laughter when he tells him about all of Charlie’s messages that morning, of the warmth of Cas’s slightly calloused hand when he pulls Dean out of the kitchen and into the shower with him. 

Of him and Cas together, now, and how right it feels.

~

When they do finally make it into the shop, with lunch for Charlie in hand, because yes it is that late by the time they make it there, Cas is fidgeting like he’s nervous. He had admitted earlier to Dean that the reason he had stayed so late the night before is because he was done carving the desk.

The admission is what finally dragged Dean out of the circle of Cas’s arms and pulling on clothes to see the final piece. They still have to stain and varnish it, which will take a few more days, and Cas said he might tweak a few things today when he saw it with fresh eyes, but for the most part, it was complete.

Dean had seen the early stages of it, but as Cas had worked more on it, he had grown oblivious to the world, so much so that Dean had avoided the whole area of the shop so as not to disturb him. As much as he had wanted to sneak peeks at it these last few weeks, he didn’t, almost as if he didn’t want to spoil himself, that seeing it partially complete would ruin his reaction with the finished work.

So as he follows Cas into the back workshop and to his corner, Dean unconsciously holds his breath when Cas lifts the cloth off of the desk because he’s not quite sure what to expect. When he finally sees it, he doesn’t think he would have ever pictured the amazingness of what he sees in his head from the rough sketches he had seen on the desk at the beginning.

 

The middle has what looks like a stampede of horses in motion, frozen mid-gallop, with an inlaid border around them. Along the edge there is the same image of the horses repeated, although not as three-dimensional as the ones in the middle. On the outside border there are horseshoes and a rope design. The drawers and cabinet Cas left the same, the door having only a slightly bevelled edge, but it’s clean and simple, like how Dean had originally made them.

It’s so gorgeous that Dean’s not sure anyone ever would want to or should use it as an actual desk. It’ll look even more amazing once they stain it, the grooves of the muscles on the horses will stand out in better contrast. God, he can’t take his eyes away from it, like he wants to memorize every detail, imagine how Cas’s hands created it and formed the pieces.

“Damn, Cas,” Dean finally says on an exhale of breath. “This is… there’s so much… how did you… I just…” He can’t seem to find the right words to express himself, can’t finish a sentence to explain how beautiful it is, how Cas took something he made and made it extraordinary.

“Do you think Missouri will like it?”

Dean finally moves his eyes from the desk to Cas, who he’s shocked to find looking vulnerable and hesitant.

“Like it? Cas, Missouri is going to flip and demand like five more from us and tell all her friends. This is breathtaking, Cas!”

Cas blushes at the praise, smiling at Dean. “Thank you, Dean.”

“Can we show Charlie?” Dean asks, so eager to show off Cas’s handiwork. Cas nods, and as soon as he gets permission, Dean rushes off to drag Charlie from the front of the store to look at Cas’s piece.

He even takes a picture of it and sends it to his brother Sam because that’s how excited he is. Cas just shakes his head fondly and accepts the praise from Dean with a smile and a faint blush, which earns him a kiss or two from Dean who wants to make his cheeks redder.

Charlie of course catches them mid-kiss and lets out a shout that sounds a lot like “Finally!” but Dean’s too distracted to notice or care.

~

The next few days are a rush of staining and drying and varnishing, and when it’s finally, finally finished, they let Missouri know it’s complete so she can come take a look at it. She lets them know she’ll be there the next day, only living about an hour or so drive from Dean’s shop, and then that night Dean and Cas and Charlie go out to celebrate.

It’s very reminiscent of the welcome dinner they had when Cas first arrived into town, only Dean and Cas are sitting a little more close together, and Charlie can’t keep herself from rolling her eyes at them. It’s good though, fun and relaxing, and Dean is so glad that they’ve gotten things figured out between them so they can have these moments together.

They haven’t talked about Cas leaving, though, and Dean kind of doesn’t want to, but he knows they can’t avoid it for much longer. Once Missouri comes to pick up the desk, Cas will have no real reason to stay there any more. He has his own business, his own life back in Illinois, and while they’ve admitted their feelings, spent intimate moments together, and act like a couple, it’s only been a few days and they haven’t discussed anything about their relationship or how things are going to work out between them.

He doesn’t want to bring it up while they are out having fun with Charlie, so he doesn’t mention it, but the questions linger in the back of his mind the whole evening and the drive home. Would they do long distance? Would Cas move down and live with Dean? Would Dean be willing to pick up shop and move to Illinois for Cas? Could he do that to Charlie? Would she even want to do that? Should he leave the shop with Charlie and set up a branch in Illinois? Should he travel back and forth to make it work? Maybe they shouldn’t even bother after this. 

It seriously hurts his head and he’s had far too much beer to really make sense of any of it. So he ignores it, and when he kisses Cas goodnight and curls up with him in his own bed this time, Dean decides he’ll figure it out later. They’ll make it work because he doesn’t want to give this up anytime soon, or ever if he can help it.

~

Missouri’s arrival the next day is both nerve-wracking and exciting. Dean’s not even slightly worried that Missouri won’t like it, although it seems to worry Cas; what he’s worried about is that she’ll want another one. Which in and of itself isn’t a problem, if anything it would mean more time with Cas, but the question is if Cas even would want to do it?

Both Dean and Cas hold their breath while they wait for Missouri’s reaction to the desk. They’ve brought it out to the front of the shop, though still under a sheet initially, so as to not make her see the mess of the workshop in the back. Dean and Cas had lifted the sheet off together, and now they are staring at Missouri waiting for any sign of approval or disappointment, really anything. But she seems to keep her face completely neutral as she walks around the desk and leans in closer to examine the details of the carving. She pulls on the handles of the drawers, opens the cabinet, runs her fingers over the edge, all while not making the slightest hint of a smile or a frown.

After what seems like forever, Missouri finally stands up and faces Dean and Cas. Dean’s not sure how Cas feels, but he feels like they are awaiting the executioner. Slowly, her lips curl up in a smile that Dean can’t tell if it’s more of a smirk than a smile, but either way it’s a happy reaction.

“I knew you two would be perfect together, you just needed a little push,” Missouri says, and the way she says it, it doesn’t really sound like she’s talking about the collaboration on the desk.

“Does that mean you like it?” Dean asks.

“Oh yes, I’m sure my son will love it. I’ll have to get a glass piece to sit on top to protect it of course,” she replies.

“We can help you with that. I know a few people that can cut one to size. I’ll give you their number and the exact measurements to give to them,” Dean says.

“Thank you,” Missouri says. “Can I arrange shipping with you as well? I’d like to send it directly to him.”

“Of course. Charlie can get that worked out with you,” Dean says thumbing behind him at Charlie behind their front desk.

“You know,” Missouri says, smile still playing on his lips, “I think you really have something here. I know a lot of people who would pay top dollar for more pieces like this. You ought to think about starting a business together, start with a few more commission pieces like mine to spread the word until you get more orders.”

Dean and Cas both look at each other and then at the desk and then back at Missouri.

“Just a thought,” she says, grinning, as she leaves them to finish taking care of the paperwork and payment and shipping with Charlie.

It leaves Dean and Cas alone with neither of them saying anything for a moment.

“What would you, um, think about that?” Cas says, voice small and hesitant.

“About what?”

“About starting a business together? Combining our stores?” 

“Uh… I actually think that sounds kind of perfect.”

Cas smiles. “Yeah?” 

“Yeah,” Dean says, sounding more sure as he says it. “Let’s do it.”

Cas’s smile widens and he bites his lip before throwing his arms around Dean’s neck. 

“Okay,” Cas says, “Let’s do it.” 

And Dean’s not sure who moves first, but he doesn’t care because he’s got Cas and they’re kissing and already planning a future together. 

They’re too wrapped up in the moment and each other to notice Missouri smiling as she exits the store, giving Charlie a wink on her way out, as if she had planned the whole thing.

And well, maybe she did.

**Author's Note:**

> The awesome art was by [Takkun](http://takeshii.tumblr.com/). 
> 
> When I originally started this I had found an amazing woodworking furniture store/site that basically would have been Dean and Cas's future business (and where I had found the desk). Unfortunately, when I finally got around to finishing this piece and posting it, the link for the store was defunct and I can't find any trace of it anywhere online other than the one pic of the desk. But, just know it was amazing and Dean and Cas's furniture would be exquisite and perfect, just like them. :)
> 
> Come say hi on [my tumblr](http://literaryoblivion.tumblr.com) or [my twitter](http://twitter.com/lit_oblivion).


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